1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to the field of networking devices. More particularly, the invention relates to a method and apparatus for secure and automated establishment of addressability of a network device, such as a router, a switch, a firewall, a virtual private network gateway, and the like, for a target network environment and securely and automatically provisioning the network device with configuration data to bring it into a fully defined, functional state.
2. Description of the Related Art
Network computing and communication devices, such as routers, switches, firewalls and virtual private network gateways, are extremely administration intensive. These network devices usually support many configurable parameters that must all be set correctly, based on how the network device is to function in the context of surrounding equipment. To set up this kind of equipment properly, an organization typically depends on a qualified administrator (either someone on staff or from a third party) with a competent understanding of networking principles and protocols. Furthermore, these skilled administrators typically must have some physical access to the network device to make it operational. Therefore, they must typically either travel to each site in the network or obtain access to the network devices prior to installation at their intended location.
While several management protocol, such as Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), exist to allow network devices already having a valid Internet Protocol (IP) configuration to be configured over a pre-existing network, currently there is no existing mechanism to automatically and securely take a network device from a factory default state to an initial operating state in which the network device can communicate and be addressable within the intended network environment.